On 6 December, at Sheraton-Metekhi Palace Hotel, Embassy of the Republic of Kazakhstan held a reception on the occasion of the 22nd anniversary of its Independence Day.After the national anthems of Georgia and his country, His Excellency Yermukhamet Yertysbayev, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Kazakhstan, made an opening speech: “I must say that this is a very special day for me personally, as it is the inaugural reception organized by me in the capacity of the

first Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of my country to Georgia, and in the history of bilateral relations.”
According to the ambassador, in the past Kazakhstan made tremendous progress in almost every area of life, be it economy, social sphere, foreign policy, or formation of electoral democracy and political pluralism: “Our achievements in economy are impressive. I will cite only one figure. Twenty years ago the level of per capita GDP was 600 US dollars per year. Now the figure is closer to 14 thousand dollars, which corresponds to the level of countries in Eastern Europe. Hundreds of billions in foreign investment has been made in the economy of Kazakhstan.”Kazakhstan is the first country in Central Asia where parliamentary elections were held on a multi-party basis, and the first country in Asia to have a chairman of the OSCE, in 2010. In the words of the first Kazakh diplomat in Georgia, Kazakhstan has “good neighborly and partnership relations with Russia and China, the same can be said about our neighbors to the south–Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan – as well as excellent relations with the United States and the countries of the European Union.”Asked if Georgia can establish calmer relations with Russia, he replied affirmatively, citing the example of his own country, which has a strategic partnership with the United States, United Kingdom and Uzbekistan, together with its good neighborly relations with Russia. “I would like to draw your special attention to the success story of Kazakh-Georgian cooperation over the years,” he concluded. “Everyone knows that at one time Kazakhstan held first place among foreign investors in Georgia. My country has leased the port of Batumi for 49 years, and it is a gateway to Europe not only for Kazakhstan but for the whole of Central Asia as well. The South Caucasus transport corridor strengthens independence of the countries of our region, and directly connects us with Europe. Therefore, Kazakh business actively penetrates into your country and we have a lot of plans with the new Georgian government to deepen cooperation for the benefit of our peoples.”Davit Jalaghania, Deputy Minister of the Foreign Affairs of Georgia, congratulated the Kazakh people on the anniversary of independence in the name of the Georgian government: “Let me sincerely wish you success, prosperity and happiness in the future. I would like to mention with high appreciation the very unique and excellent relations between our two countries. Kazakhstan is today a very strong and already developed and sustained state, with the wise leadership of President Nazarbayev, leading the country to successful economic reforms, creating new institutions, and building democracy in the country. We have always felt Kazakhstan’s strong support and assistance of our country. We will try to reciprocate with a warm and brotherly attitude to you. We have unexhausted potential to further increase and develop our relations to create a peaceful and happy society, as the example of our friendship and good co-existence, despite many challenges around us.”